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module 8
violent earth
33
Geology
Undergraduate 3
10/27/2008

Additional Geology Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
100 year flood
Definition
is used by FEMA to establish regulations for building near streams. A 100 year flood has a 1 percent chance of happening in any single year, although it also has a one percent chance of happening in the year following a similar magnitude event
Term
alluvial fan
Definition
implies the transport of loose sediment fragments and fan refers to the shape of the deposit in map view
Term
bankfull capacity
Definition
is the level at which the water spills over the banks.
Term
base level
Definition
when the stream will reach a lake or the ocean it reaches a base level below which the stream cannot erode
Term
bedload
Definition
the sediment carried along the steam bottom
Term
bedrock stream
Definition
develops when streams erode down to resistant bedrock
Term
braided streams
Definition
not common, form end members of rivers that exhibit a complete range of behavior
Term
channel scour
Definition
the depth of sediment eroded during floods, affects the shape of the stream channel distribution of sediment.
Term
debris flow
Definition
when a flood is more than 47 percent sediment. it is concentrated enough that you could scoop it with a shovel.
Term
delta
Definition
the delta is like tan alluvial fan except that the delta sediments are deposited underwater
Term
discharge
Definition
the total volume of water flowing per unit of time, is the average water velocity multiplied bu the cross sectional area of the stream
Term
dynamic equilibrium
Definition
in which the inflow and outflow of sediment is in balance
Term
flash flood
Definition
comes on suddenly with little warning, water levels rise rapidly
Term
flood crest
Definition
where the flood reaches its peak discharge and then falls more gently
Term
flood plain
Definition
at high water the flooding river spills out of its channel and over that broad area
Term
gaining streams
Definition
the rate at which water flows from groundwater into a stream depends upon both the slope of the water table and the ease of flow though the water saturated sediments or rocks
Term
glacial outburst floods
Definition
lake water may float the glacial ice damn, leading to rapid failure and flooding downstream
Term
graded stream
Definition
a stream that is able to maintain this equilibrium
Term
gradient
Definition
is the steepness with which it descends from its highest elevation to its lowest, typically expressed in meters per kilometer
Term
hydrograph
Definition
to represent intensity of flooding as a plot of the volume of water flowing in a stream over a period of time
Term
lahar
Definition
a mudflow of volcanic material
Term
load
Definition
the volume of sediment a stream can carry
Term
losing streams
Definition
lose water into the ground and often dry up between storms
Term
meandering streams
Definition
which sweep from side to side in wide turns called meanders
Term
mudflow
Definition
if mud or clay dominates the solids in a flowing mass
Term
natural levee
Definition
as water velocity slows at the edge of the deeper channel, sediment deposits to form a natural levee
Term
overland flow
Definition
heavy precipitation can overwhelm the near surface permeability of soils, leading to rapid runoff over the surface
Term
paleoflood analysis
Definition
uses the physical evidence of past floods that are preserved in the geologic record to reconstruct the approximate magnitude and frequency of major floods in order to extend the record further into the past and to recognize larger floods
Term
point bar
Definition
sediment is deposited as a point bar downstream in the slow water along the inside corner of the bend
Term
recurrence interval
Definition
the average time between floods of a given size
Term
stream order
Definition
the number of tributaries of a stream, which has a significant effect on the rate of rise of floodwater's during and following a storm
Term
surface runoff
Definition
during torrential rainfall, some may flow across the ground as surface runoff directly into streams
Term
watershed
Definition
streams accumulate surface water from their watershed (drainage basin)
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